"Let me win, but if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt."

Volunteers are Vital

Volunteers are the backbone of the Special Olympics Florida movement. They enable Special Olympics to offer sports training and competition and provide our athletes with the opportunity to grow and showcase their skills. Special Olympics Florida would not exist today without the time, energy, dedication, and commitment of more than 25,000 volunteers. Those year-round and day-of volunteers work at various levels and fill a wide variety of roles in our programs.

Below is a broad description of the activities in which the majority of volunteers participate. This will give you a basic overview of the responsibilities associated with the different assignments and general understanding of the time commitment required. Remember, the specifics of the actual assignment are certain to vary according to the individual program requirements within each county. Contact your county coordinator, David Haines, for more information and to get involved.

Category Description Approx. Amount of Time Required

Sports Training Works directly with athletes to improve their skills in specific Special Olympics sports. Seasonal, dependent on sport. Flexible hours. Minimum of 2 hours per week for 8 weeks prior to competition.

Administration Membership on County Management Team to help plan, coordinate and/or monitor activities to promote the Special Olympics mission. Minimum year commitment involving regularly scheduled meetings as well as assignments associated with position.

Public Information & Promotion Prepare and/or convey information about Special Olympics to various groups through any of several ways including newsletters, publicity and speaking engagements. Flexible hours ranging from very short and intense (speaking engagements) to several months depending on specific activity (e.g., develop a promotional brochure).

Fundraising Plan and/or implement activities to raise financial and in-kind support through presentations, organizing and/or participating in special events. 3-4 hours at a one-time, single event to a minimum of one year as a committee member.

Sports Competition Perform short-term tasks associated with conducting major events involving a variety of activities and large number of athletes and guests: officiate sporting events, escort athletes, provide security, assist with meal distribution, equipment set-up general hospitality. Usually 4-8 hours at the actual event with an orientation prior to activity.

Becoming a Special Olympics Florida Volunteer!

There are two basic forms of Special Olympics volunteers. A Volunteer Registration form is required of each type of volunteer and both Class A and B volunteers must be able to show a valid photo ID at the time of registration.

Class B: Class B Volunteer Registration Form
The first is a Class B or "day-of" volunteer who volunteers just on the day of events and competitions and has no sustained interaction with our athletes. These are what we call "walk-on" volunteers, meaning no prior experience or greater involvement with Special Olympics is required, and they are essential to Special Olympics Florida being able to host and run competitions.

Class B volunteers ages 15 and younger are welcome but must be accompanied by a parent or adult volunteer.

When volunteering at a local or area competition in your home town, the Class B form is available either prior to the competition or on-site the day of the games. Your local County Coordinator, David Haines, will help you get involved!

Class A: Class A Volunteer Registration Form
The second type of volunteer is a Class A volunteer. Class A volunteers are typically coaches and/or chaperones; people who have sustained interaction with our athletes and have made a more prolongued commitment to the program (e.g., are a coach and therefore have committed 2-3 months a year to volunteering).

Important: we strongly encourage those interested in becoming a Class A volunteer to first speak with your County Coordinator, David Haines, to see if what they are interested in doing would make them a Class A or Class B volunteer. This will save you, the volunteer and your local program time and paperwork.

Once you've spoken with your local County Coordinator and you know that Class A status is appropriate for your level of interest, fill out the Class A Volunteer Registration Form and return it to your County Coordinator.

Please read the Special Olympics Inc. Volunteer Registration Policy which was developed to safeguard our athletes and our volunteers.

Once your Class A application has been turned in to your local Special Olympics County Coordinator, it is then submitted to the Special Olympics Florida State Headquarters and a background check is completed. Upon approval, you may then begin working in your preferred area.

The information on this page was modified from the Florida Special Olympics website (used with permission): Florida Special Olympics Website

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Category	Description	Approx. Amount of Time Required
Sports Training	Works directly with athletes to improve their skills in specific Special Olympics sports.	Seasonal, dependent on sport. Flexible hours. Minimum of 2 hours per week for 8 weeks prior to competition.
Administration	Membership on County Management Team to help plan, coordinate and/or monitor activities to promote the Special Olympics mission.	Minimum year commitment involving regularly scheduled meetings as well as assignments associated with position.
Public Information & Promotion	Prepare and/or convey information about Special Olympics to various groups through any of several ways including newsletters, publicity and speaking engagements.	Flexible hours ranging from very short and intense (speaking engagements) to several months depending on specific activity (e.g., develop a promotional brochure).
Fundraising	Plan and/or implement activities to raise financial and in-kind support through presentations, organizing and/or participating in special events.	3-4 hours at a one-time, single event to a minimum of one year as a committee member.
Sports Competition	Perform short-term tasks associated with conducting major events involving a variety of activities and large number of athletes and guests: officiate sporting events, escort athletes, provide security, assist with meal distribution, equipment set-up general hospitality.	Usually 4-8 hours at the actual event with an orientation prior to activity.